


I Am Not Jealous

by jackjones47



Category: Person of Interest (TV), Suits (TV)
Genre: F/F, Root likes a jealous Shaw, The team is saving numbers, post-Samaritan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-26
Updated: 2016-12-02
Packaged: 2018-09-02 09:01:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8660788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jackjones47/pseuds/jackjones47
Summary: I decided to add one more chapter to show that Esther’s number is not an irrelevant one, as one should suppose, but quite the contrary. It went into a different direction, completely unexpected even by me. But this is science fiction, of course, and has no connections to reality ...





	1. One

The subway, in the morning.

 

Finch, staring at Root in an odd way: “Miss Groves, we have a new number.”

Root, a bit puzzled: “Okay, Harry, but why are you staring at me like that?”

Finch, uncomfortably: “Well, this woman looks exactly like you, that’s why.”

Root, Shaw and Reese, contemporarily: “What?”

Finch: “Yes, meet Esther Litt, mother of two, CEO and owner of a small but successful company operating in the food sector.”

Shaw, looking at the computer screen, which showed three photos of the number and some basic information: “Holy crap, you two would be indistinguishable, Root; she is also 5’ 8’’, just like you, and only some days older than you, and the other measurements are equivalent too! And she is in the food industry, what’s not to like about this woman?”

Reese, smirking: “You know exactly Root’s measurements, right Shaw?”

Shaw, angrily: “Don’t be an asshole, Reese, knowing each other in our line of work can be helpful … “

Reese: “Yes, above all the length of the legs, the shape of the ass … “

Root, beaming: “Don’t forget the nimbleness of the fingers and the softness of the tongue, John … “

Reese, not so widely smirking now: “Yeah, that too.”

Finch, highly uncomfortable: “Please, Mr. Reese, I am negatively surprised that you bring up such gross matters.”

Reese, more seriously now: “Sorry, Harold. Have you detected the threat?”

Finch: “A woman in her position can have a lot of enemies, but it’s interesting that she got divorced six months ago, and not in a friendly way.”

Shaw: “Okay, so her former husband is probably the threat; I’ll tail him.”

Finch: “I am afraid, Miss Shaw, that it could be useless. He withdrew 200,000 $ from his bank account three days ago, cash, so my guess is that he paid a killer for hire, and will probably fabricate an alibi for himself.”

Root: “So, we must see if he has some engagement which could allow him to create this alibi.”

Finch: “Yes, I already did; this evening he is attending to a meeting at the BRA, and he asked to give a speech.”

Reese: “BRA standing for … “

Finch: “Bible Readers Association. Which is remarkable, considering that he never goes to church.”

Shaw: “When are they supposed to meet?”

Finch: “at eight p.m., and these meetings usually last no less than two hours.”

Root: “Okay, presumably the killer will hit in that time slot. Do we know where Esther will be this evening?”

Finch: “I’ll let you listen to a phone call. The one with Root’s voice is Esther, the other one is Donna Paulsen, secretary of Louis Litt, lawyer.”

Shaw: “Litt? Is he … ?”

Finch, starting the recording: “Esther’s brother, yes.”

Donna: “Hallo, Esther, it’s me, Donna.”

Esther: “Hi, Donna, I hope you are not calling to cancel our dinner … “

Donna, sighing: “Not exactly, but Louis won’t come; he’s busy with an important client … he is so sorry.”

Esther: “That sucks, you know, so what do we do?”

Donna: “He said we go anyway, only me and you, and he pays. Is that good for you?”

Esther:”Mmh, that can work, but only if you tell me some funny story about him as a lawyer.”

Donna: “Yes, but you tell me something funny about his time as a child?”

Esther: “Deal! So, seven o’clock, Del Posto.”

Donna: “I’ll be there, bye!” Click

Finch: “Okay, Del Posto is a restaurant about two miles from here, and ten minutes’ ride from Ms Litt’s place. The first hour of their dinner should be uneventful, but after eight p.m. the killer could go into action at any moment.”

Root, reflexively: “I was thinking … I could take Esther’s place at the restaurant.”

Shaw, mockingly: “Please, you don’t even really eat … that Donna chick would realize immediately you aren’t her!”

Root, turning to Finch: “Do Esther and Donna know each other?”

Finch: “Barely. They have met a couple of times in the corridor of Louis’ firm, according to the Machine.”

Root: “So, I could easily take her place; John can focus on the killer, and I stay in the spotlight.”

Shaw: “I don’t like when you play bait.”

Root: “Sweetie, John will protect me and Donna, but you know I can fend for myself.”

Finch: “I am inclined to agree with Miss Groves. It’s much better to have a victim that can bite back.”

Root: “Oh, Harry, how do you know that I bite? Have you maybe seen the marks I have left on Sameen’s ass?”

Shaw, growling: “Stop this, you moronic woman, and let’s devise a plan.”

 

The doorbell rang, and Esther went to open the door. A short, vaguely exotic woman was there, staring at her in awe, then flashing a badge. “Agent Sameen Jackson, FBI; may I?”

Esther, mildly worried: “Of course, come in … what’s happening? Nothing bad, I hope.”

Shaw, sitting on the couch: “You could say that! Your ex-hubby is trying to kill you.”

Esther, scared: “What? Is this a joke?”

Finch, reproachfully: “Was that necessary, Miss Shaw?”

Shaw, shrugging: “The sooner she knows, the better, boss.”

Esther, confused: “Whom are you speaking to?” 

Shaw: “Ah … my supervisor, Mr … Nightingale. We are here to protect you, so no need to worry, okay? Your ex hired a hitman, but we don’t know his face, so you have to keep calm and let us do our work. And, we have information that your children are at your mother’s place at present, is this right?”

Esther, recuperating a bit: “Yes, they will sleep there. Okay … listen, in an hour I have an appointment; should I cancel it?”

Shaw: “Not at all, but you won’t go.”

Esther, frowning: “I don’t understand.”

Shaw: “Simple, a colleague of mine, Agent King, will take your place; she is armed and good with a gun, and you are not, so ...”

Esther, shaking her head: “No, it cannot work, the person I am supposed to meet knows me … “

Shaw: “Yes, but she doesn’t know you very well, right? You met only a few times … “

Esther: “Yes, but enough to make myself recognizable.”

Shaw: “Well, you know, Agent King happens to look like you. Not approximately, but exactly like you.”

Esther, skeptical: “That’s hard to believe … “

Shaw: “She’s outside, can you let her come in?”

Esther, mildly curious: “Of course, why not?” And she turned to the door, where a woman was entering.


	2. Two

So Esther Litt had the most shocking experience of her life so far. Looking at Agent King was like looking into a mirror, because the other woman had nothing different from Esther herself, not even the hairstyle or the dress; and when she began to speak, well, even the voice was the same.

Root, reaching out: “Augusta King. Nice to meet you, Ms. Litt; may I call you Esther?”

Esther, shaking hands, highly flustered: “Oh … of course, sit down. Do you mind if I ask you how you could … duplicate my look?”

Root, shrugging: “It was Mother Nature, I guess.”

Esther: “No, I was referring to your dress, which is identical to one of mine, your make-up, and your hairstyle.”

Root: “Oh, that … yeah, someone followed you to the hairdresser, and the dress, you used to wear it often; by the way, you will have it on this evening too, even if you are staying here; you know, it might be useful that you and me are … interchangeable, in a manner of speaking.”

Esther, still upset: “Okay; so you will go to dinner with Donna … “

Root: “Yes, and now I am going to explain how this works. My colleague Sameen will stay here with you, and I’ll wear an earpiece which will enable me to hear what she, or you, or Mr. Nightingale, our supervisor, will say. I took the liberty to install a couple of cameras outside your house, so we will see what’s happening around here; the footage will reach the screen of this laptop I am carrying. I am going to place it in your living-room, okay?”

Esther: “Okay. And your boss is now … ”

Root: “In our underground New York office; he is not intentioned to meddle, except if strictly necessary, but he will be connected too.”

Esther: “Go on.”

Root: “The fact is that I know only some bits of your life, so when Donna begins to ask you about your brother … “

Esther: “I will intervene, providing you with the right answers.”

Shaw: “Good, Esther, you are smart too.”

Root: “Outside the restaurant there will be another operative of ours, John Wiley, and I will be armed too. When we catch the killer, we’ll make him spill the truth, and your formed husband will go to jail.”

Esther, nodding:”Okay, let’s do this, then.”

 

Del Posto Restaurant, ten past seven in the evening. The persons involved in the operation were Donna, Root, Ester, Shaw and Finch. Esther, Shaw and Finch could hear anything the others said, and speak freely. Root could hear anything, but couldn’t talk as she wished, since she was with Donna; Donna was not connected, so she could only hear Root, whom she believed was Esther.

 

Root, smiling: “Here we are, Donna, what can you tell me about my big brother?”

Donna: “Let’s see … the last funny thing I remember he did was when you came to our firm for your divorce; he had promised not to meddle, but he used a glass on the wall to try to listen to what Harvey was telling you … I stopped him, of course … “

Root, chuckling: “Oh, my, so ridiculous.”

Donna: “Yeah, and now you tell me something about him as a child.”

Root, pretending to ponder the matter: “Let’s see … “

Shaw: “Come on, Esther, say something, so Roo … Agent King can answer.”

Esther: “When we were both in high school, many boys made friends with him only to have a chance with me; I used to find this funny, back then, but now I realize it was sad, instead.”

Root repeated the same words.

 

They continued for half an hour like this, then a panicked Finch intervened: “Sorry to interrupt you, Agent Jackson, Agent King, Ms. Litt, but I have a situation … there is a bomb threat at the eight precinct that requires Mr. Wiley’s presence, so he won’t probably be at the restaurant in time to assist, if the killer decides to hit soon.”

Shaw: “Well, this is bad news; Agent King has only a Nano to defend herself; if the killer is heavily armed, she will have a really hard time; not to mention the possibility that there can be more than one killer … “

Finch: “We cannot risk Agent King’s life, or Miss Paulson’s, or any other customer’s. Agent King must find a discreet way to lure Miss Paulson out of the restaurant and to Ms. Litt’s house, where you, Agent Jackson, can protect them both.”

Shaw: “It’s the only way. Augusta, did you hear what … Mr. Nightingale said? You have some minutes to think of something to convince Donna to come here, with you.”

 

Root, feigning a bit of discomfort: “Donna, what if we leave now?”

Donna, mildly worried: “Are you okay, Esther?”

Root, in a seductive voice: “Not really. I think I am done eating. Besides, I wanted to show you my … collection of stamps.”

Shaw, angrily: “What the fuck … !”

Esther, dumbfounded: “I don’t have a collection of stamps.”

Donna, puzzled and lightly flushed: “Are you serious? Are you trying to take me to your place?”

Root: “Why not? You told me Harvey left you after a lot of years; the same Harvey slept with me only for sex, my husband cheated on me. I came to the conclusion that men are unreliable … hence … well, you are so good-looking, Donna ... ”

Donna, in a shocked voice: “Oh God, I didn’t imagine … but you are beautiful too, Esther … And yes, Harvey can be very successful when he tries to be a jerk. It would be extremely satisfying to tell him that two women he slept with have been involved in something exciting … together!“

Root: “So, what do you say? We call a cab, within ten minutes we are in my bedroom … ”

Donna: “Let’s go, before I change my mind!”


	3. Three

Esther Litt’s house, about eight p. m.; in the living-room.

 

Shaw, upset: “Fin … Mr. Nightingale, it wasn’t supposed to go like this!”

Finch:”Agent Jackson, please forgive Agent King, she had to make up an excuse and she had to improvise quickly … “ 

Shaw: “The Hell I am forgiving her!”

Esther, to Shaw: “You are jealous … “

Shaw, completely upset, yelling: “I am not jealous! But this behavior, flirting with civilians … is un-professional! Against the rules of the Bureau!”

Finch, pleading: “Please, Agent Jackson, keep calm and think rationally.”

Esther, raising an eyebrow: “It should be your boss, this Mr. Nightingale, the one who should worry about any infringement of rules, not you.”

Root, whispering so Donna couldn’t hear, while sitting in the cab heading to Esther’s house: “Yes, Sameen, my double is right.”

Shaw, getting red-faced: “Uh … oh … yeah, but, you are my partner, co-worker, that is, Augusta, and I take these things seriously. Rules are everything!”

Esther, sighing: “Okay, so your colleague Augusta is your girlfriend too. And her come-on to Donna made you angry, I get that … “

Shaw, defeated: “Whatever! Okay, we might have slept together once or twice.”

Root, in a low voice: “Two hundred forty-five times, to be accurate.”

Esther, smirking: “Oh, isn’t this un-professional too, according to the FBI standards?”

Shaw, growling: “Okay, Esther, let’s ditch this argument, there is still a murderer at large, and you are his target. Let’s avoid any … distraction.”

Esther: “I don’t know … I don’t like how things are going; when Donna is here, how can someone tell her ‘Hey, we were kidding, no girl-on-girl sex tonight … ‘?”

Shaw: “We cannot, clearly, it would be rude, and since she is smart she would have suspicions we cannot allow her to have … this operation is top secret!“

Esther, frustrated: “But on the other hand, if your girlfriend sleeps with her, Donna will think she has had sex with me … “

Shaw, hit by a sudden thought: “YES! Yes, Esther, you are a genius. My … co-worker cannot sleep with Donna, because your bodies are different!”

Esther: “What?”

Shaw: “Yes, my colleague is sloppy and stupid, you know, and therefore has been shot a lot, so she has a full collection of scars … haha … not stamps, scars, isn’t that funny? Besides, one of them is mine … I mean, I am the one who marked her there, when she was a bad girl ...”

Esther, confused: “What are you saying?”

Shaw: “Don’t you see? If she has sex with Donna today, and with you the next time … “

Esther, horrified: “I don’t intend to have sex with Donna the next time! I mean, there won’t be any next time!”

Shaw: “ … I was saying, Donna would realize you and Augusta are not the same person, and we cannot allow that, so you must have sex with Donna today, too.”

Esther: “Are you crazy? I am heterosexual!”

Shaw, shrugging: “I was too, well, mostly, and now I only fuck Augusta. Try it, you may have a pleasant surprise … orgasms like you have never experienced … “

Finch, desperately: “Sameen, language … “

Esther, adamantly: “No way I am doing this! I like men; I was married once.”

Shaw, convincingly lying: “Yeah, a lot of good came from that. Besides, I was married too, so I tell you that nothing can compare to lesbian sex; and I bet that if I kiss you now you will appreciate it.”

Esther: “I don’t think … mmmhh … “

Root, puzzled: “Sameen? What are you doing?”

Donna: “Whom are you speaking to, Esther?”

Root, cheerfully growling, having realized what was happening: “Oh, nothing, sometimes I express my thoughts loud … an old habit.”

Shaw, panting: “Mmmmhh … okay, Esther, what do you think?”

Esther, heavily breathing: “God, you Feds are crazy … “

Shaw: “Yeah, well, in our line of work a bit of madness may be helpful … but you didn’t dislike that one, did you?”

Esther: “Which one? You kissing me or you grabbing my pussy? I don’t know what to say, truly. I guess Agent King is upset now, if she heard us … moan.”

Shaw: “I only repaid her in kind. Don’t worry, I have this in check.”

Esther: “God, look at the laptop: the cab is here! We have two minutes at most!”

Shaw: “Good, now I’ll settle in the guest room, you go to your bedroom and stay hidden, when Donna goes to the bathroom Agent King and you will switch places, then you will be alone with Donna. And I’ll get out of the building with my colleague to take care of the threat.”

Esther, not as adamantly as before: “I am not sure I can do this.”

Shaw: “No kidding; we are risking our lives to protect you, you owe us something in return.”

Esther, sighing: “Okay, then, I’ll do this one.”

 

Everything went as expected. Root and Shaw, with the help of Agent Wiley, who came late but still in time to the party, kneecapped and caught two hitmen, who spilled everything. It was half past nine in the evening that the NYPD took them into custody, and Det. Fusco was instructed to arrest Esther’s former husband, Jeremy Edelstein.  
All this happened outside Esther’s house, and when everything had calmed down Reese, Root and Shaw looked at one another, and the man said: “Well, we should tell those ladies that the threat has been taken care of; they are safe now.”

Root: “Yes, we should; they are in Esther’s bedroom, I think.”

Reese: “Why the bedroom?”

Root, shrugging: “Who knows? Probably to hide under the bed if things go south? Let’s get inside.”

 

Shaw, outside the door of the bedroom: “Do you think I should knock?”

Root, hearing two female voices inside moaning: “Probably not … seems they are having a good time.“

Reese, bewildered: “Jesus, are they … ? Well, I guess homosexuality is contagious!”

Root, punching his shoulder lightly: “Homosexuality is not a disease, John.” 

Shaw: “Well, some morons think it is, like our Vice-President, for instance.”

Root, cheerfully: “Sameen, if he is right, then you and me are terminally ill … besides, all this moaning is turning me on, maybe it’s time to go home?“

Shaw, smirking: “I drive. We will inform Esther later.”

Reese, disgusted and exasperated: “I’m leaving!”

Shaw, after Reese had left, eagerly: “Root, there is no one else here, no need to go home, let’s use the guest room … “

Root:”Oh, yeah … and you must still convince me to forgive you for kissing Esther.“

Shaw, indignant: “What? You began to flirt with Donna … besides, Esther is identical to you, so technically it was like kissing you!”

Root, completely turned on: “You talk too much; let’s see if you can use that mouth for a nobler purpose!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to add one more chapter to show that Esther’s number is not an irrelevant one, as one should suppose, but quite the contrary. It went into a different direction, completely unexpected even by me. But this is science fiction, of course, and has no connections to reality ...


	4. Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I wanted Esther to be a relevant number, and I wondered, what would have happened if she, a well-known businesswoman, declared her homosexuality in a country where the President is not tolerant and kind like this one, but a sexist, homophobic bigot full of flaws, who might endanger our planet …? 
> 
> Of course, this possibility is pure science-fiction, isn’t it? Besides, such a man would never be elected, so I am sure no one will imagine I was trying to depict someone you might know.

Root’s apartment, the morning after, after an insane number of orgasms.

 

Shaw, caressing her lover’s cheek: “You know, you were right, Root: I was jealous.”

Root: “Mmh … and why is that, Sameen?”

Shaw: “Let’s see … maybe … because I am in love with you?”

Root: “God, Sameen, it’s so good to hear you say that … I love you too.”

Shaw: “You know I kissed her only for the mission, right?”

Root: “I know. Besides, the Machine has just told me that this mission was the most relevant She has ever given to me. And that saving Esther could mean saving the world, in the long run.”

Shaw, frowning: “Really? How so?”

Root, shrugging: “I don’t know yet; She says we’ll discover that within four years … but we must keep in touch with Esther in the meantime, and let her know who we really are ... “

 

The New York Times, March the 23th, 2017

“Dear readers, odds are you have eaten at least once in your life some snack processed by Litt Food Limited. So Esther Litt, founder of said society, is someone we all know somehow.  
Besides, you probably remember that two months ago her former husband, Jeremy Edelstein, was accused of attempted murder and arrested.  
Now this woman decided to amaze us in a completely different way: she announced her engagement with another woman, a secretary named Donna Paulson.  
Ms. Litt told us that she is very grateful to two female F.B.I. agents, who not only saved her life, but also opened her eyes and cleared her mind regarding her sexuality.”

 

The New York Times, April the 13th, 2017

“Some days ago the Director of the FBI had been summoned by the President to determine the identities of the two Agents who saved Ms. Litt’s life, catching two dangerous killers in the process.  
Needless to say, the President’s aim is not to commend that feat, but to punish them for “turning two normal heterosexual persons and well-adjusted members of society into freaks, or lesbians if you prefer”.  
It didn’t help, probably, that Ms. Litt’s company has its administrative offices in a building opposite the tower our President built.  
The Director couldn’t find out who those women were, so he has probably lost the President’s favor, which he had earned when he helped him win the elections.” 

 

The New York Times, April the 12th, 2019

Here the text our interview with Ms. Esther Litt, senator of the Democratic Party:  
Q: “Senator Litt, what made you choose this political career?”  
A: “Mmh … I wouldn’t know … maybe I saw someone in charge who is a homophobe, misogynist, sexist, bully, racist, liar, tax evader, warmonger, bigot, environment-hater, childish old man? Have I forgotten something?”  
Q: “Probably not. So, your relationship with this man has been rather ... complicated.”  
A: “Yes; we have never met in person, yet, but when I publicly declared my love for my future wife he was enraged … I guess he realized that if I were queer he couldn’t grab my pussy … and he covered himself with ridicule trying by any means to thwart me; first he asked for a law meant to dissolve any company whose owner or CEO was not heterosexual, then he said in his Address to the Nation that any good American had a moral duty to boycott my products .“  
Q: “I remember; those who didn’t support him saw you as a victim of injustice, and sales of your goods went up 300% in four months.”  
A: “Yes, and now my company is worth two billion dollars; and regarding taxes, well, I pay any dollar that is due! So, it’s safe to say that his temper tantrums determined my financial success, and prompted me to enter politics.”  
Q: “Are you going to challenge him in the next presidential election?”  
A: “Yeah, the Party asked me that, and I think I will say yes, eventually.”  
Q: “Wow, that’s good news … do you think you can save the nation?”  
A: “If you are a US citizens you have a lot of problems, especially if you are a woman, or homosexual, or colored, or poor, or sick, or disabled. But there is also a whole world to save, not only the US. His policies have added 1.4 more billion tons of carbon emissions, our country is an international pariah and the world economy has shrunk by 3%, due to his protectionist measures. It will take a lot of time to fix all this, but I am determined to try.”

 

CBS live, October the 1st, 2020

“It’s obvious now that the presidential race has a logical winner: Senator Esther Litt.  
The polls already gave her a huge margin, given the poor performance of our sitting President, and the great popularity of Senator Litt, who came to symbolize the women in this country that are subdued but are also strong enough to react (her former husband tried to kill her), the LGBT, the entrepreneurs who operate properly and pay their taxes.  
But the last debate between her and the current President wiped out all doubts.  
Ms. Litt was even more charming than usual, with a daring but beautiful hairdo which kept her right ear completely hidden.  
But it’s easy to say that she completely overpowered her opponent, who ended his miserable performance red-faced, groggy and trembling; in a word, ridiculed.  
Ms. Litt had answers, and always the right answers, for any question, and showed a knowledge of any matter vastly greater than his, as if she had some God whispering to her.  
Her last words of this memorable evening were for her wife, who is currently running their company. Then she reached out to her, and kissed her under the eyes of the whole world.”

 

In a remote, abandoned subway station, the real Esther Litt, a.k.a. the future President of the United States, was watching all this, with a IT genius, a former CIA operative, and a former ISA operative, now married to a former killer for hire who was at the moment impersonating her. Oh, and a dog.

 

Finch, plaintively: “I resent that we did this; you would have won anyway, Senator, even if Miss Groves hadn’t taken your place and killed the race with an unlimited knowledge at her disposal … “

Reese, reasonably: “Harold, you know the Machine said that we weren’t allowed to take any risk; if he wins again, the world is doomed, gone for good … “

Finch, exhaling: “I guess you are right … “

 

Senator Litt, turning to Sameen Shaw: “Well, Sameen, I admit that I felt a pang of jealousy, seeing your wife kissing mine. And you?”

Shaw, smiling: “Not so much; I know Root loves me, same as you should know Donna loves you. Besides … it’s all for the mission.”


End file.
